Gong Xi Fa Cai (Singapore ~ Singapore)

January 2020

Our last stop was Singapore and this was because flights from Sri Lanka to Wellington where thin on the ground and we were looking at two 10 hour stopover (Singapore and Melbourne). In hindsight we realized this was because of us trying to fly slap bang in the middle of Chinese New Year.

Haven't really been to Singapore for about 17 years and it's changed quite a bit plus gotten a lot more expensive. Pretty much all of the pavement hawker stalls have been moved into food halls (some of which are still more than a bit rustic).

Surprised and pleased to find that various Hawker stalls have made it into the Michelin guide and some have received stars. The one that we really wanted to try was of course the Michelin Star Laksa! Very tasty.

The Laksa was very nice but, call me biased, not quite up to the standard of the laksa's in Kuching from the Tat Hok Food Center near where I used to work.

Only managed to get to one other Michelin listed stall as the bulk of the stalls had shut up for a week because of Chinese New Year. The soup with noodles was way more punchy in spice level than that the laksa.

Every now and then we still find something odd when shopping for essentials (i.e. chocolate) and in this case it was individually wrapped hard boiled eggs.

Because of the heat. humidity, Chinese New Year and a bit of a stomach bug we didn't o a huge amount of sightseeing in Singapore but had a wander around the "Bays" area which has undergone significant development since we were last here.

Some quite stunning architecture with the Art/Science Museum.

A very poncy (expensive) hotel - the infinity pool on the roof is meant to be amazing.

Quite a neat footbridge.

And of course the Gardens by The Bay - complete with huge metallic trees that are illuminated at night.

The last bit of sightseeing was actually at the airport as in one of the terminals is the Jewel Changi - a combination of shopping, food and a massive garden with an indoor water feature that has to be seen to be believed.

The actual flight from Singapore to Melbourne and then onto Wellington was fine, but with 10+ hours to kill in Melbourne we grabbed a day-room at one of the airport hotels for five or so hours of sleep - well worth the $150.

Time to start planning the next trip.

Heading back (Kandy and Colombo ~ Sri Lanka)

January 2020

From Sigiriya we headed back to Kandy for one night and then back to Colombo for a night before heading out to Singapore. Decided to opt for a "taxi" from Sigiriya to Kandy and found one online for a reasonable price - about $70 for the three hour ride.

Quite funny as the car we were driven in was reserved for use by the director of one of the Government Organizations. This was evident by the "Director" and "VIP" sticker in the front window, red and blue lights build into the grill, tinted glass on all windows and the flag stand on the front bumper. 

Back in Kandy we stayed at the "Cinnamon Citadel", the same hotel we had stayed in when in Kandy a few days earlier. When we were researching Sri Lanka we found reference to the fact that is not as cheap as nearby places such as India, Myanmar, Thailand etc... and fair to say it isn't. Even so it is still quite cheap. Cinnamon Citadel for example was about $80 a night (including an amazing buffet breakfast). Very nice large room with a/c and balcony.

Very nice pool on the river side.


We ate there, mainly because it was easier then trying to get a tuk tuk into the center. The nightly buffet dinner was superb at $25 each, and this was just the deserts.

From Kandy it was a rather pleasant 4 hour train trip back to Colombo through some great scenery. Prior to catching our train had a wander round Kandy station. The board showing departures, platforms and times. Looks like it has been there forever

The equipment in the Station Box I think is original and about 150 years old and still fully functional. A good handful of levers need to be pulled for each track change. i.e. levers to signal track change, lever to make the track change, lever to stop you accidently undoing another lever...

 Back in Colombo we picked up a few last minute souvenirs before heading out for a nice meal.

The food in Sri Lanka has been great though did come across one local delicacy that didn't really tempt us.

Next stop - Singapore.

Big Rock (Sigiriya ~ Sri Lanka)

January 2020

Sigiriya is almost at the center of Sri Lanka and is perched on top of a large rock that rises dramatically from the surrounding plains and was the epicenter of the Kingdom of  Kassapa (while it lasted).

Surrounding the rock is a beautiful landscaped (and restored) area of terraces, formal water gardens and Buddhist shrines.

About halfway to the top of the rock there are some stunning well preserved frescos that date back to the 5th century. Though have to say the artist was a tad single minded when he (and I fairly sure it was a he) drew them.

Just past the frescoes is what is known as the Mirror Wall" - a 3m high wall constructed parallel to the rock face that was coated with a smooth glaze. Such a wall was of course a magnet for graffiti and messages and signatures inscribed tend to date from 6th to the 14th century. Woe betide any tourist whom was stupid enough to try and add there own inscription.

At the northern end of the rock about two thirds of the way up is the remains of a massive lion. When originally constructed in the 5th century the gigantic brick lion covered a large chunk of the face of the rock wall and the stairs up passed through it's paws and then through the lions mouth.

Some of the accessway up the rock face was a bit unnerving and the last climb up to the top down right tricky.

The top of the rock, 6 hectares, is pretty much covered in the ruins of the fortified capital and only the low foundations of the wall remain.  The construction of this citadel would have been a horrendous task as all of the walls were constructed from red clay bricks. Bricks that would have to have been made and fired at ground level and then carried up to the top.

Ancient Ruins (Polonnaruwa ~ Sri Lanka)

January 2020

From Kandy we headed north to Polonnaruwa. Did the 146 kilometer (four hours) journey by local bus and definitely paid the local rate as we got a ticket.

FYI - 197 Rupees is about $1.70

Abut 800 years ago Polonnaruwa was the thriving commercial and religious center of Sri Lanka and the place Kings ruled from. Today it is a very quiet town with some amazing ruins. We are now closer to the east coast and back at sea level and the weather is very hot and humid.

First night there we went out for a bit of a walk in search of a hotel that served cold beer, on the way picked up a couple of samosas as a snack to have with the cold beer. Forgot that monkeys know that small plastic bags carried by people contain food. Was mugged by a small pack of monkeys and lost one of the samosas. But did find a nice spot for a cold beer and the remaining samosa.

Next day we hired bikes and spent the bulk of the day cycling round the amazing ruins of the ancient city, they are spread out over a large area, and so we  sweated profusely.

We stayed in a small guest house set on the edge of some paddy fields where Black Ibis's and the like foraged.

One of the advantages of staying in local guesthouses is that the food is all home cooked and not toned down for the tourist taste. The curry and rice we had for dinner was superb, chicken curry with 3 or 4 vegetable curry side dishes.. Strictly speaking these guest houses aren't allowed to server alcohol (as a liquor license is required which is very expensive) so your bill at then end of the day will include thinks like "Special Mixed Fruit Drink".

From here we head to one of the most touristed spots in Sri Lanka - Sigiriya.